- Publisher
- United Nations Industrial Development Organization
- Authors
- Ysanne Choksey, Kajol, Julian Somers, UNIDO Net Zero Partnership
- Version number
- 1.0
- Publication date
-
1 October 2025
- Pages
- 11
- Project
- Produced within the framework of Global Steel Transformation
Iron and steel: what is the state of decarbonisation technologies?
Summary
This explainer, conducted in collaboration with Agora Industry, examines the current state of decarbonisation technologies in the iron and steel sector, one of the world’s largest industrial sources of emissions.
Global steel production releases around 2.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, largely due to continued reliance on coal-based blast furnaces. The explainer outlines key technologies that can reduce emissions today or are advancing rapidly, including hydrogen-based direct reduced iron (H₂-DRI), electric arc furnaces powered by renewable electricity and carbon capture and storage. It highlights the enabling conditions required to scale these solutions, such as access to clean power, affordable green hydrogen, supportive infrastructure and adequate finance.
With nearly 70 percent of coal-fired blast furnaces requiring reinvestment by 2030, the next decade represents a critical window to avoid carbon lock-in. The explainer emphasises the importance of accelerating low-carbon steel pathways in emerging markets and developing economies, which are expected to drive most future demand, drawing on regional insights from the Pohang Knowledge Exchange on Low-Carbon Steel, which took place in August 2025.
![[Translate to English:]](/fileadmin/_processed_/8/f/csm_15_insights_global_steel_news_73f640a802.jpg "The global steel industry can achieve net-zero emissions by the early 2040s")
![[Translate to English:]](/fileadmin/_processed_/9/e/csm_global-steel_project_news_2_283e600f74.jpg "Shifting global steel reinvestments from coal to clean")
